In my lawyering skills workshop, we're starting to concentrate on the formalities of the trial ("Your honor, I move that the photo marked defense exhibit fifteen be admitted into evidence," and the like). I'm surprised by how hard it is to consistently get all the procedural minutiae right, even in a controlled classroom setting. As laid out by the professor, showing a piece of evidence to the jury is a seven step process.
In practice, of course, the courtroom formalities are mostly empty show because the attorneys know each other's cases and aren't going to be surprised by anything that happens at trial. Even so, our professor warned us to learn to say all the magic procedural words smoothly and with confidence. If you come off as a bungler, he said, the jury won't take you seriously. Good advice, I'm sure.
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